Fort Bragg Craigslist ad: Tree climber looking for work

Craigslist seems weirder around a military town. Fort Bragg and the greater Fayetteville area have provided several hilarious weirdos. There was the man with 5 felonies demanding that we all stop being absconding interlopers. And there was the 50 foot dresser that was also specifically advertised as ‘not haunted’

This week’s entry into my series on Craigslist is no exception.

experienced Tree climber looking for work. (Fayetteville )

Looking for climbing work NO TREE TOO BIG OR TOO DANGEROUS

I have 12 years of climbing experience and i owned my own business near Louisville KY and was the top climber in my area but i moved down to NC to be near my family. I have my own truck and equipment CLIMBER ONLY.

Contact number 910-XXX-XXXX

Skipper

12 years of climbing experience? That’s like saying, “I’m 14 years old.”

I think I’ll hire Skipper, anyway though. Been meaning to trim this thing for a while.

Here’s the original screenshot for posterity.

(below the fold)

(EDIT: after some comments, I thought I might clarify a little further, see below)

A few people mentioned that it ‘wasn’t weird’. Perhaps, admittedly I am a layman. But notice the difference from a layman’s understanding of the terms “tree climber” and “arborist”

Tree climber:

Tree climbing is a recreational or functional activity consisting of ascending and moving around in the crown of trees.

Use of a rope, helmet, and harness are the minimum requirements to ensure the safety of the climber. Other equipment can also be used depending on the experience and skill of the tree climber. Some tree climbers take special hammocks called “Treeboats” and Portaledges with them into the tree canopies where they can enjoy a picnic or nap, or spend the night.

Tree climbing is an “on rope” activity that employs a mixture of techniques and gear principally derived from rock climbing and caving. These techniques are also used to climb trees for other purposes: tree care (arborists), animal rescue, research, and activism.

I could understand your point of view if it was talking about the latter. But he didn’t say ‘professional arborist’. He emphatically said “CLIMBER ONLY”

It struck me as a claim to be a professional in the same sense that there are parkour professionals. Or professional mountain dancers:

I could understand your point of view if it was talking about the latter. But he didn’t say ‘professional arborist’. He emphatically said “CLIMBER ONLY”

It struck me as a professional in the terms that there are parkour professionals, or professional mountain dancers

Tsu Dho Nimh

It’s not strange, it’s just job-related slang.

Tree pruning and removal services have two different groups – the climbers (around here they are often called “changos” which is Mexican slang for monkeys) who are up in the tree hacking things off with chainsaws and the ground crew that is tossing stuff into the shredder.

There is a large difference in pay between the climbers and the ground crew – climbers have to be comfortable in harness, know how to secure themselves, and be careful to not cut anything but the branches.

12 years of being a climber means the guy is NOT careless.

Tsu Dho Nimh

Oh … the arborist is the guy standing on the ground telling the changos what to cut.

Paul Weaver

Send him out to cut down Lone Pine on Holland DZ – it will throw Division in to turmoil, as they’ll have to discover another standard assembly point for jumps there.

Phillip IV

Looking for climbing work NO TREE TOO BIG OR TOO DANGEROUS

If you’re services are available in Great Britain, we have a willow on our school grounds that has been giving us some trouble.

Kind Regards,

Minerva McGonagall, Headmistress.

Anonymous Atheist

Somewhat related, this radio show did an episode (a decade ago) about the stories behind classifieds ads:

The ad could certainly have been worded more specifically and professionally. For instance, owned what type of business? A tree service, landscaping service, or mountaineering or survival business, or tree climbing business. One may be highly experienced at tree climbing but the ad does not tell me this person can identify the symptoms of a disease, pest, drought damage, ice storm damage years later or chemical misuse. It does not tell me this person can prune a tree properly which is as much art as is is science.

Disclaimer

The authors of this blog are speaking on their own behalf. Any views expressed on this site belong to the authors and do not reflect the views of the Department of Defense or any branch of the military.